Checking out my google reader I find an interesting present for whoever wants a world map.

Yes, it’s the world map poster and you can scratch every country you’ve been. It’s a quite classy wall map, but then you scratch off the places you’ve been travelling and it reveals some lovely colourful and geographic detail. You only need to rub it with the edge of a coing, scratch-card, keys….and get the amazing dettail underneath.

Saving in accomodation when you travel? Sure! Although when I travel I prefer staying with my fellow couchsurfers, sometimes having a good time at hostels is a nice adventure to discover by yourself and other travelers the best places of the city you are visiting!

I read in a blog that if you want to travel in May to Athens, Barcelona, Krakov, Dublin, Edimburgh, Lisbon, London, Los Angeles, Melbourne or Rome and you book your hostel at Hostelbookers, beds are 20 cents (not all of them, check the conditions)!! (don’t book them at HostelWorld if you want this deal).

Other promotions can be found on the chains like Hostelling International, where you can get free nights if you are travelling and staying at their places.

But…why a hostel? here are my reasons to stay in a hostel better than a hotel:

Pros of statying at hostels:

Hostels usually are budget-oriented (check it before you go there because sometimes you can find cheap rooms for 2 in hotels, but rates are lower than hotels).

Hostels also have private rooms like the hotels and private bathrooms too (usually you sleep in dorms with shared bathroom: girls separate from boys).

Hostels have computers with internet connection or free WIFI for its travelers (I’ve never seen a hotel with free internet yet, they usually charge you 😦 )

Hostels usually have more common areas and opportunities to socialize. The dormitory aspect of hostels also increases the social factor of meeting new people.

Hostels have different activities every day: contests, parties, and other programs to share books, DVDs and other items. Sometimes they have agreements with gyms or other activities in the city for free or cheaply.

Hostels do not usually have the same level of formality as hotels, you can find young people at the office desk with piercings, tatoos or just part time workers that are at university and it’s always good vibes.

Almost all the hostels provide you with breakfast, although it’s a self-catering action: they provide you the food and you organize your breakfast. For lunch and dinner, you cook the food you buy using the recipy your mom teach ;). Usually hostels have one kitchen or more.

Some hostels offers you the opportunity to stay there for a while, you can deal a better price for your staying, and some of them offer you the option to work over there if you want, like the one in Flagstaff, AZ.

Cons of staying at hostels:

It depens on your life style, maybe the reasons above are not for you, but if everyone is clean and we use hostels facilities and we leave them as we find them , I just think there’s no reason on having cons and enjoy some nights at the hostel 😉

And you guys, do you think there’s more cons? more pros? help me to settle the list up!!! Safe travels!

Before going to travel to a city, you have different options to get the information for a better exploration of the new place you are. That options are infinitive, depending on your relationship with locals (a lot of people have a lot of contacts everywhere in the world, or use sites like couchsurfing or hospitality club), or forums online, libraries, bookstores for a Lonely Planet (my favourite guide) …so many places to get that information for really cheap and just to take the best for their days in the new city.

But today, there’s another option also for free for having the information on your mobile device!

If you have a smartphone and want to travel to the major cities in the United States and Canada, this is the perfect time to download for free the 13 Lonely Planet city guides! The apps are available for free until tomorrow, February 4th (they are usually 5,99 USD) and they include: Hundreds of places to explore and points of interest of real interest, the maps work offline and all the information is in detail of the following cities:

Yes, it’s been a while since my last post, but after realizing how important is to share my little tips, my reads, my travels with not just my friends, with everyone here is my New Year resolution:

1. Post more often

2. Travel more

3. Keep you updated about my movements this year.

So before start thinking about what i’m going to blog, I share with you the TOP 10 countries for 2011 from the Lonely Planet blog, with a ranking based on scores for topicality, excitement, value for money and the “special factor” that makes a country different.

The reason is because it’s been 1 centurysince Machu Picchu was discovered. The Peruvian goverment will organize a big party with Paul McCartney, Sting and Bono to commemorate these 100 years, although I don’t like that a festival will be holded in the natural amphitheater of Machu Picchu I think it will be something good for the country and i’m sure they will take care of the enviroment of this World Heritage. Another country to my list 😉

There are a lof of ways to get good deals when you travel, but this one I found it’s completely wild. How many days will take you to drive you over a continent? a what about if that continent is Australia?

Yes guys, if you have 6 weeks off and wanna travel through a part of that 7,686,850 km2 you should start thinking that maybe it’s your turn to apply for the Aussie Roadtrip Adventure.

The Van-Tastic Adventure offers the opportunity (if you got selected) that seven pairs of travellers, will:

Fly (you and your team) from anywhere in the world to Australia

Drive all the way to the selected area the organization tell you with a

Have free acces to the main statet’s top attractions

With money for gas

A digital video camera and laptop

And you only have to tell the organizators the best places you visit with a mini-documentary.

An initiative from the Tourism’s department of different city councils that can be the perfect excuse to visit the country with a really low budgetI don’t know if this type of promotion works, but what I’m really sure is that this type of experience can be something that can change your life, like it did it in

And you only have to tell the organizators the best places you visit with a mini-documentary.

An initiative from the Tourism’s department of different city councils that can be the perfect excuse to visit the country with a really low budget. I don’t know if this type of promotion works, but what I’m really sure is that this type of experience can be something that can change your life, like it did it in

Some of you will think like me, I don’t know if this type of promotion works, but what I’m really sure is that if you are selected: it’s destiny and good luck, this type of experience can be something that can change your life, like it did it to other participants before and other initiatives like this, for example the Bacardi Freedom Route, from Istambul, Turkey to Essaouira, Morocco with only one purpose: finding the best summer sunset.

After the succes I got with the ideas throught Work Abroad I, I had to write the second part.

Work Abroad I was for everyone and you didn’t need a university degree, now I’m posting about other ways to get into the labor market abroad if you have a college degree.

If you are graduated, almost graduated, you should check:

International organizations: They provide students in higher education with experience relevant to their studies in the field they want.

AIESEC, the largest international young organization for people who wanna develop their potential. One of last steps into the AIESECWay is the Work Abroad and everyone can apply for one of the 4 types of intership into the fields of: management, technical, educational and development interships. If you need to know more about it, just ask me I was part of this organization and can give you the contact info of the closest office.

IAESTE, the international young organization for the exchange of student of Technical Experience. It works like the one before, but just for enginerring and technical majors.

Technical jobs

Architects without borders, Check your closer chapter and join it, you will be able to cooperate for fair and sustainable development initiatives with disadvantaged people and communities.

Domestika, a Spanish website for jobs related with design, graphics, tv, 3d, music and other technical positions.

European Union: there so many portals where you can find options for applying for a job in the EU countries.

Eures, Eures is the European Job mobility portal, for work in the EU and different sites to look for jobs.

Euraxess, EU website you can find Information on jobs, services, rights and networks for researchers.

EPSO, European Career, website for working for one of the European Institutions.

Other organizacions

CIVI, French organizations that allows you to find opportunities abroad. For people from 18 to 28 years old.

AIPT, the Association for International Practical Training is another international organization that offers you the opportunity to have an intership. AIPT is authorized by the U.S. Department of State to issue form DS-2019, the document required to enter the United States on a J-1 visa.

CDS International, Fellowships, internships, study abroads and another innitiatives to have a cultural experiencie.

IIE, It’s the website of the Institute of International Education. For education professionals. Not only jobs, also fellowships, conferences and events.

Global Routers,it’s a summer teen community service programs & gap-year or college internships in Africa, Asia and Latin America

Althought this is only a short list, you can find a lot of programs abroad around the web, every university also offers interships, fellowships from your major to other countries. You can also find opportunities looking with web2.0 tools, I’ll write about it too on another blogpost.